


They All Fall Down

by SinPark



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Angst, Exhaustion, Fear, Fever, Give Jeongin a break, Hallucinations, Hearing Things, It gets angstier as it goes on, Minho kicks somebody, Minor Violence, Moving, Mystery, No one knows what's going on, Paranoia, Psychological Drama, Psychological Warfare, Sick Character, Sickfic, Sickness, Yang Jeongin | I.N-centric, not an au, slight angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:14:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22480855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SinPark/pseuds/SinPark
Summary: When SKZ moves once again, they are relocated to an apartment slightly closer to the company, and are housed on the top floor of the five-story complex. Strange things begin to take place, and the more they think about the apartment, the more weird happenings they discover. Ten days after they get settled, Minho falls ill with a dangerously high fever. Other symptoms soon ensue, including hallucinations and irrational behavior, accompanied by an onslaught of others. One by one, the members seem to catch the same thing, but the symptoms vary slightly from person to person. There is one commonality between them all, though: they’re losing their minds, and if they don’t figure out what’s causing the fever soon, they all risk going insane. Their days are numbered, and the longer they take to solve the mystery, the more deadly the fever becomes.
Comments: 18
Kudos: 83





	1. Prologue: Day Zero

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna be up front with y'all, I don't have much of the story written yet, just the premace and first couple of chapters, but I do have an outline. Please be patient for updates! I'm taking more classes this semester and it's kinda stressful. Anyways, enjoy the into ro TAFD!

The landlord drawled on in the most monotonous tone Jeongin had ever heard. He’d gone over the details of their new apartment at least four times now, and Jeongin could see Chan growing more frustrated with the constant repetition.

“There are four bedrooms and three bathrooms, as I’ve shown you. The entire apartment was completely remodeled thirteen years ago, including the windows, electrical work, and even the framework to make it more structurally sound. The only thing that is not new is some of the pipes that run through the kitchen, because they were still up to code and in pristine condition when construction was going on.”

The man led them out of the cramped hallway and back into the kitchen before he continued his monologue.

“As requested, there are nine keycards issued for this apartment, and I have placed them there on the breakfast bar. Should one get lost, there will be a fine of 60,000 won. We will not replace keycards after the third time they are lost. This is a pet-free, non-smoking establishment. Should you be caught with any illegal contraband or property that is outside of the contract agreement, you will be required to vacate the apartment within twenty-four hours. Do you have any questions?”

_“No!”_ They all practically screamed in unison. Jeongin caught Hyunjin rolling his eyes while Minho and Seungmin didn’t look up from their phones, probably to save the poor, middle-aged man from a glare-induced stroke.

“I will leave you be, then.” He walked towards the door, and Jeongin almost let out a frustrated huff he’d been forcing down for the past half-hour when the man turned around. “Thank you for renting from SuiteLocal, the apartment complex that lets you live comfortably, locally, and happily.”

The door shut at last, and Jeongin felt the tension in the air dissipate.

“He sounded like an undead door-to-door salesman and I have never been so close to committing homicide in my life,” Minho complained.

Chan took a deep breath, and motioned for everybody to circle up. Everyone’s shoulders seemed to relax as they formed their familiar huddle.

“I know none of you wanted to move again, at least not for a while,” their leader began. “But there is some good that’s come out of this. We’re close enough to walk to the company and back now, which will save us money on taxis and busses. There’s another actual bedroom, not just some walk-in closet we have to shove a bed into, or a makeshift office space we need to convert into a bedroom. It’s so much more spacious than where we’ve been staying. Try to look at it positively.”

“We still have to move,” Changbin said. “And on top of that, we need to be putting in more time at the studio. This year’s schedule isn't going to wait on us.”

“I know,” Chan replied. “I didn’t say this was going to be easy. We’re gonna lose a lot of sleep over the next few days, but it’s nothing we haven’t done before. Try not to wear yourselves out, though. I’ve been promised that we will not be moved again, unless the company goes bankrupt, and based on JYPE’s net worth, that’s never going to happen. Now, let’s tackle this situation like we would anything else: together, headstrong, like nothing can stop us.”

With a round of cheers, they filed out of the apartment, each grabbing a keycard on the way out. They met the manager in the lobby, and began the arduous process of dismantling furniture, packing it away, and transporting it from one building to another. When the day finally ended, they’d only put half the beds together, and brought their two couches, which resulted in some members cuddling up. Hyunjin practically dragged Jisung to bed, while Changbin climbed under Seungmin’s covers and wrapping his limbs around the younger boy before he could protest.

Jeongin allowed his mind to wander while he lay on the couch waiting for sleep to catch up to him. He couldn’t believe the company made them move again, especially without releasing them from their schedules. With sore muscles, he checked the clock on his phone.

_4:57. Can’t wait to get through vocal lessons on two hours of sleep._

They were all half-dead from exhaustion when they called it a day, and each one of them dreaded the work ahead of them. Any attempt to calculate how much time he would have to sleep during the afternoon only served to increase the weight of his eyelids. Jeongin closed his eyes as his consciousness slipped away from him.


	2. Chapter One: Day Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still exhausted, the members continue to settle into their new apartment. Changbin introduces them to a new product from a company one of his cousins works for that's making a new line of vitamin drinks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter in incredibly short, so I'm sorry, but it is VERY important to the plot.

Jeongin watched with dreary eyes as Chan and Jisung filed in through the door. The group’s sleep schedule hadn’t improved much with all the unpacking they’d done in the past couple days, and neither had their workload at the company. Chan took a seat at the bar while Jisung went to shower. The leader’s eyes drooped as he began to fall asleep almost instantly.

“Guys!” Changbin burst through the front door with far too much energy at 9:45 P.M.

“What the hell, Bin?” Minho grimaced at the intrusion as he worked away at the stove.

Jeongin moved from the couch in the living room to sit beside Chan, rubbing the leader’s back soothingly. Chan hummed in comfort.

“I found something and we all have to try it!” Changbin exclaimed. He set a small, pink packet onto the counter. “It’s this vitamin-rich energy drinking powder. You mix it into your water. It’s supposed to be really good for you.”

Seungmin turned from where he’d been chopping vegetables by the sink to pick up and examine the pouch, reading the nutrition facts on the back.

“Where’d you get this? I don’t recognize the brand.”

“That’s because it’s not on the market yet,” Changbin said. “It’s in beta now, meaning the producers need test subjects. One of my distant relatives is on the team and she asked me if we’d be interested.”

“You want us to be lab rats?” Minho questioned, one brow raised.

“Well, yes…” Changbin moved his hand to the base of his neck. “But she assured me that the product has been tested in several different ways already and they’ve verified that it’s totally safe for human consumption. They aren’t experimenting with any new ingredients or anything, so it should be alright. Besides, we’re free to back out at any time.”

“How long does she want us to test it for?” Jeongin asked.

“Three months. All we have to do is give her a call back and she’s willing to personally come over to answer any questions. Then we just sign the papers and she gives us each a one month supply, and someone will come meet with us once every two weeks to run tests and make sure nothing bad is happening.”

“I think it’s a good idea,” Chan muttered. “We all clearly need more energy, since nothing’s going to ease up at the company anytime soon.”

“Tell me about it,” Jisung called from behind.

Jeongin spun around in his stool to see the older boy enter the room, wet hair covering his eyes. He sat on Chan’s right.

“What did I miss?”

“We’ll talk about it in the morning since not everyone was here,” Chan decided.

“Family meeting at 7:30?”

“I won’t be here then,” Jeongin said. “I have to leave for school ten minutes before or I’ll miss the shuttle.”

“Does seven work for everybody?” Minho suggested.

“Sounds good to me.”

Minho instructed Jisung to get the plates out of the cabinet and one by one, they served eight plates. Throughout their several moves, they still hadn’t acquired a dining room table, but now that this apartment actually had space for one, they’d been looking online all week. As a temporary solution, the 2000 liners sat on the floor around the coffee table in the living room while everyone either stood or sat at the bar.

Jeongin helped wash dishes before retreating into the room he shared with Hyunjin, who had already passed out in his twin bed. Jeongin changed at the pace of a snail, limbs sore from a combination of workouts, practice, and moving furniture. He crashed onto his mattress with a relieved sigh. He lay awake for a while, listening to the comforting pitter-patter of the other members.

The lighthearted bickering of Seungmin and Jisung floated through the air, accompanied by Minho’s music as he cleaned up the rest of the kitchen. Jeongin found it easy to relax with such simple sounds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Let me know about any thoughts/questions you have and follow my Twitter where I will be promoting this work.  
> xoxo  
> ~Prince


	3. Chapter Two: Day Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was removed somehow ? Idek when but uh, yeah here's chapter two ig

Just as Changbin said, his cousin came by a couple days after they’d all agreed to try the energy drink as part of her trial run. After it was confirmed that none of them had any known allergies to the ingredients, she went over possible side effects, and they signed their respective contracts.

That was two days ago. So far, Jeognin certainly could feel the effects. It helped to wake him up more quickly, so he made it a point to drink it either before he left for school or an hour before practice, depending on the day’s schedule.

Like every other Sunday, most of the members slept in, including Jeongin. He stood by the counter beside the fridge and carefully poured the powder into his bottled water, then closed the lid and shook the drink to dissolve the powder.

“You even use bottled water for _that?”_ Seungmin questioned beside him, nursing a cup of coffee.

“Tap water isn’t good for you,” Jeongin said, a phrase he used anytime his bandmates mocked him.

“You’re just picky.”

He chuckled. “No, I’m being safe. Chemicals in tap water can cause lead poisoning after drinking it for years, or even months. Lots of water treatment plants get their water from natural sources like lakes or rivers. What do you think happens to that river water every time someone dumps a dead body in it?”

“You’re so dramatic,” Felix commented from behind him, causing Jeongin to startle.

“Don’t sneak up on me!”

Felix rolled his eyes. “I’m not sneaking, just walking.” He massaged Jeongin’s shoulders for a moment to help him settle down. “Wanna play Overwatch in a bit? I’m bored.”

“We haven’t set up the wifi extender yet. The Internet can’t handle both of us…” He trailed off with a sigh, relaxing into the Aussie’s deft hands. “I’m comfortable here, anyway.”

Felix laughed at him and moved away to open the fridge, pulling out a container of leftovers.

_“Family meeting!”_ Changbin’s gruff voice rang from the other room.

Jeongin and the rest of the maknae line rushed in to fill up one couch before the other members took all the good seats. He saw Chan and Changbin already on the floor using the latter’s laptop. Soon enough, Hyunijn, Minho, and Jisung squeezed onto the other sofa.

“Okay,” Chan started, “this shouldn’t take long, but I wanted to go ahead and get this over with. We found three different tables that work well for here, and the chairs and everything, we just figured we’d consult everyone beforehand. Let’s vote?”

They flicked through three open tabs, each providing pictures of a different table. One made a sort of oval, which Jeongin disregarded immediately, as whoever sat on the ends would have to put their drink dangerously close to the edge. The second was white, which did not fit their dining room at all. He was surprised Chan even showed that one. None of them liked white furniture. The third, however, was perfect. Large, wide, rectangular. Dark, shiny mahogany wood. Jeongin could practically see it in the house already.

“That one,” he said.

“Definitely,” Minho agreed.

One after another, all the members voted for the third table, and Chan quickly ordered it before bed. Changbin Apple-paid him a fraction of the cost, followed by everyone else. Jeongin sighed in contentment. Their house was really starting to come together. They had a picture of all eight of them, pre debut, right in the center of a little collage in their living room, surrounded by other pictures of each of them. Everyone had a photo of their family somewhere in the house, and Minho insisted on having one of his cats by the door. A photo from their first American concert hung above Chan’s desk where he worked on new tracks sometimes. They had their huge brown couch that fit most of them, plus Byeongkwan (a former JYP trainee who used to stay with Chan) let them keep the recliner he always sat in, though Jeongin always felt a bit guilty when he occupied it.

“I still sort of miss trainee days, the people we knew.”

Chan, the only one left in the room, whipped around to look at him.

“We all do,” he said casually. “But this is better for us. We’re happier, freer now.”

“I know.” He shrugged. “That’s why I’m happy about it, too.”

Chan gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze. “Go shower. We have recordings in the morning and it's a new album, so it could be an all-day thing. You need extra sleep.”

“You say that like you don’t.” He scoffed, but smiled all the same. “Okay. I’ll go. But don’t be up too late.”

“Trust me, I won’t.”

The door to the hall bathroom swung open just as Jeongin went to knock, towel in hand while he held his pajamas under his arm. Felix yelped, causing Jeongin to jump backwards in further surprise. The blonde brought his hand up with a hiss, inspecting his palm.

“Are you alright?” Jeongin asked hurriedly.

Felix nodded. “Yeah, yeah. Fine. Damn, the rust on this nasty doorknob nicked the side of my hand.”

“Seriously?”

He took Felix’s hand in his own and turned it over. The cut ran deeper than he’d expected, but didn’t look like it needed stitches.

“Put some peroxide on it,” he said, letting go.

“We need to fix that tomorrow. Hyunjin cut himself on it yesterday, too.”

“You’re probably right…”

Felix mozied off into his room and Jeongin entered the steam-soaked bathroom.


	4. Chapter Three: Day Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the morning of their first day of recording sessions for their upcoming album, and the members rush to get ready to head to the studio. They are forced to rework their plans due to Minho suddenly falling ill before the group leaves their new apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since the last update. I'll go over my new update schedule in the end notes.

Jeongin shot straight up in bed to the blaring alarm across the room.

_Of course._

Hyunjin always set his phone to go off the earliest, and used the loudest, most annoying default tone he could choose. Predictably, he slept right through it regardless, thus disturbing Jeongin, and likely anyone in the neighboring bedroom.

“Hyunjin!” he whined, throwing a stuffed bear at the elder. “You suck! Turn off your phone!”

Hyunjin rolled over, tapped his screen until the noise stopped, and huddled back under the covers, all without opening his eyes. Jeongin threw his blankets off of himself and pulled out a hoodie and jeans to wear, quickly changing before gently pulling Hyunjin’s blankets away.

“Get up. Recording session.”

“Mm.”

“Hyunjin.”

“Tired.”

“Me too, but I still got out of bed, and if the baby has to do it, so do you!”

Hyunjin didn’t budge. Jeongin groaned, rolling his eyes so hard he thought they might get stuck. Finally, he flicked the dancer’s forehead.

“Ow! Jeongin, why?”

“Because asking nicely didn’t work, and neither did asking rudely.”

Hyunjin mumbled something, but sat up, so Jeongin went to brush his teeth and fix his hair before heating up some leftover stew in the kitchen, where Felix and Chan were sitting at the bar eating and tapping away at their phones.

“Good morning,” Felix said as the youngest entered the room.

“Morning Lix. Chan, do you know how many tracks we’re going to record today?”

“If everything goes as well as I want it to, five.”

His eyes blew wide open. “We’ve never been able to work on that many in just one session,” he pointed out.

“I know, which is why realistically I think we’ll stop after three.”

“Let’s aim for four, then!” Jisung said, rinsing his coffee mug in the sink.

“Jisung!” Chan exclaimed with a disappointed gaze. “Why would you drink coffee this morning? You _know_ we have to record!”

“I did the same thing for _NOT_ and _MIROH_ but here we are, all these months later, still making bank. It’ll be fine, promise.”

Jisung patted Chan’s shoulder in mock comfort and left the room.

“Chan!”

Jeongin, Felix, and Chan himself all turned to the hall, where the voice had sounded from.

“Was that Seungmin or Minho?” Felix asked.

“Chan!” Seungmin rounded the corner.

“What’s wrong?” the leader asked.

“It’s Minho. He’s not getting out of bed.”

Chan grimaced. “Please, can we not do this today? He’s a grown man. He knows how to get his ass up on time.”

“No, it’s not like that.” The desperation in Seungmin’s voice only grew. “I don’t think he can. He’s hardly coherent, and he’s sweating a lot. I don’t know what to do.”

“Let me see.”

Chan stood, and Jeongin followed them to the bedroom where Minho, as Seungmin said, lay unconscious, beads of sweat on his brow, halfway under the sheets. His face was pinched together in what looked like discomfort.

“Minho?” Chan said carefully, kneeling beside him. “You feelin’ okay?”

“Hm...Chan?”

“Yeah it’s me. What’s going on? Are you sick?”

“Please…” Minho’s voice came out as a hoarse whisper, eyes still shut tight.

Chan lifted a hand to the man’s forehead, and pulled away with a sigh. “I think you have a fever. Seungmin, will you go get the thermometer? It should be in the basket in the hall closet with the other medical stuff.”

Seungmin nodded and dashed out of the room. He returned a moment later with the tool in hand. Chan coerced Minho into letting him stick the thermometer under his tongue to take his temperature.

“Yeah, slight fever. 105.”

“What should we do?” Jeongin asked.

“I’m fine,” Minho muttered softly, blinking his eyes open as he sat up.

“No, you need to rest for a while,” Chan protested, but the other simply pushed him aside and got out of bed.

“Please don’t worry about it,” he said, exhaustion seeping through his voice.

Jeongin frowned. “Minho, you should take today off.”

“I don’t…” Minho paused, bringing a hand to his head. “Don’t wanna be alone.”

“Okay, that is not a good enough reason to overwork yourself when you’re sick, I’m sorry,” Chan siad. “You’re staying home.”

He managed to get Minho back in bed, but the younger pushed him back after a moment, only to then grab hold of his bicep.

“No!” Minho said vehemently. “I can’t be alone, you don’t understand!”

“Hey, take a deep breath,” Chan encouraged, once again kneeling beside the bed. “It’s going to be okay. What are you so worried about?”

Minho shook his head. Jeongin noticed the tears in his eyes with shock. Chan seemed to see them, too.

“What’s wrong? Why are you getting upset?”

“M-my eyes…”

Red flags popped up everywhere in Jeongin’s mind.

_What’s wrong with his eyes? Did he hurt them somehow? Can he not see straight?_

“They want my eyes! They’re going to come for my eyes!”

_…What…?_

“Minho, what are you talking about?”

“I-I had this dream, and I…” He cut himself off. Tears raced down his cheeks. Chan gently wiped one away, but Minho slapped him right across the face and curled in on himself, back to the wall. “No! Don’t touch them!”

Chan gazed back at Jeongin and Seungmin with a pleading look. They both shook their heads.

“Minho, is it okay if someone stays here with you while we go to the company? Then when everyone else is done, we’ll send the others back so that whoever stayed with you can come record. And if you’re feeling better by then, you can come, too.”

Minho nodded, but kept his lips sealed shut.

“I’ll stay,” Seungmin offered in a heartbeat.

“No, you have some of the most lines. You’ll take the longest, so we might as well get yours done sooner. We’ll see if Hyunjin or Felix can take care of him…”

Chan instructed Seungmin to wait with Minho in the bedroom and for Jeongin to come with him outside.

“What’s wrong with him?” he asked.

Chan sighed. “I don’t know. It’s probably just a combination of the fever and a nightmare. I’m sure it’ll pass soon.”

“But...he hit you. Minho doesn’t even playfully hit people.”

“He was freaked out. I think he was convinced I was going to hurt him somehow. I don’t know.” He shook his head. “I need to see who wants to hang back. It can’t be me, Jisung or Changbin, because we’re too involved in the process. Seungmin’s parts are too vital to the session, same for you, plus I don’t want our youngest member to be responsible for him. Fuck. If Woojin were here, Seungmin could do it. It _has_ to be Hyunjin or Felix, but God knows how good they are at caring for paranoid sick people.”

“Don’t stress right now,” Jeongin chided. “He’ll be alright. It’s only one day. If he sleeps enough and chugs enough water, he could be better by tomorrow.”

“You’re right.” Chan ran a hand through his dark hair. “I know you’re right. I’m just wearing a little thin today.”

“I’ll talk to Hyunjin for you. Finish getting ready.”

“You’re a Godsend.”

Jeongin smiled and went back to his room, where he found Hyunjin checking himself out in the mirror.

“You’re so vain,” he commented.

Hyunjin just rolled his eyes. “What do you want?”

“Minho’s sick. Someone needs to stay and take care of him today while everyone else records. Whoever finishes first will come back to swap with you that way they can get your lines done as well.”

“Shit, is he okay?”

“I’m not sure,” he said honestly. “He kind of...backhanded Chan.”

Hyunjin laughed, before coughing awkwardly to regain his composure. “I’m sorry, I just...wish I’d been there to see that. And maybe film it.”

“Don’t be rude,” he scolded. Hyunjin’s apology came in the form of a shrug. “Something just seems off,” the youngest continued. “He said he had a bad dream and kept muttering stuff about his eyes.”

“It probably just felt real or something. I’m sure he’s fine. I can hang back for a while. Good luck on your lines,”

“Thanks.”

Jeongin turned to leave, a slight frown on his lips at the circumstances, and right as he made it to the door, a hand smacked his butt.

“I hate you!” he yelled as Hyunjin melted into giggles behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who reads this! Sorry again for being late updating and replying to comments. I was away from my computer over break and I don't really check AO3 on my phone.
> 
> Going forward, I am going to aim for one update each month, but I may not make it sometimes. I honestly don't have much written for this fic but I do have a good outline to follow. I have started a new full time job, though, and my college classes are all over the place because of the virus.
> 
> Please stay safe and follow your local health advisories. Wash your hands any time you handle things like money, as that gets passed around a lot. Stay home if you think you're even a little sick.
> 
> Thanks again for reading! All comments are super appreciated! :3


	5. Chapter Four: Day Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be a brief content warning to let you know about some things that are coming up in later chapters.
> 
> Thank you for your patience for this update!

Anxiety settled in Jeongin’s stomach like an extra dessert; nauseating and full of discomfort. When Chan informed their manager, Yong Minjun, of Minho’s ill state, he decided he needed to come and see the sickly man for himself. Minho still went on about people trying to take his eyes, even in his sleep. His skin was coated in sparkles of sweat, and he could barely stay conscious for more than a couple of minutes at a time.

“What the hell did he take?” Minjun asked as they returned to the living room.

“He’s not on drugs,” Changbin said flatly. “He was fine when he went to bed the night before last night, and we’ve been around each other tons because of the move. We would know.” His arms crossed over his chest.

“Okay, so are any of you sick?”

Jeongin shook his head and sat on the couch between Felix and Seungmin. The former lay his head on Jeongin’s shoulder.

“I’m calling a doctor.”

“No!” Chan blurted before shaking his head. “He’s paranoid. I don’t think taking him to a hospital is a good idea right now, especially with the possibility of him being seen like this. If it freaks him out when I try to get close, a stranger isn’t going to have better luck.”

“That’s why I’m calling one of the company’s doctors.” Minjun raised the phone to his ear.

The room fell into a tense silence as the man spoke over the phone. Jeongin caught Chan biting his nails when Hyunjin held the leader’s hand to stop him. Minjun occasionally asked for some information, like had Minho been sleeping, had he taken any sort of medication, what his symptoms were, before finally hanging up the phone.

“Doctor Choi will be here soon. She’s very trusted within the company. I’m sure some of you know her.” The manager looked at Seungmin and Jisung.

_That’s right...Seungmin saw her when he strained his voice. And Jisung…_

“Right, well. I better head back to the company anyway,” Chan said. “I’m supposed to go live today.”

“No, you should stay,” Minjun said gently. “If he just has a severe fever, it’s still contagious, and I don’t want you to get someone sick.”

“What should I do about the livestream?”

Two soft knocks rapped on the door. Chan and Minjun made eye contact. “We’ll discuss it later. I’ll get the door.”

Minjun welcomed Dr. Choi inside. Jeongin hadn’t met with her before, but he’d seen her in the company building a couple of times. Her sleek black hair fell just above her shoulders in a bob, and bangs framed the sides of her face. The simple beige heels she wore put her at eye-level with Changbin.

“Nice to see you all,” she greeted with a slight bow, which the boys all returned. “I understand one of you has a bad fever?”

“Yes,” Chan answered. “He had a high fever yesterday, and we’ve brought it down a little, but he’s still not able to get out of bed, and there are some other issues…”

“Right, Minjun-ssi mentioned paranoia and hallucinations?”

“We think he had a bad dream,” Hyunjin butted in. “He keeps saying things that don’t make any sense.”

Jeongin wondered whether or not they were going to tell her about the part where Minho backhanded Chan, but kept the thought to himself.

“Do you mind if I see him? His name is Minho, correct?”

“Yes,” Minjun said. “This way. Boys, you can wait here if you don’t mind.”

The two elders left the room.

“What do we do if she can’t fix him?” Seungmin asked. “He can’t record like this.”

“We should wait before making any major decisions,” Changbin said. “He could make a quick recovery.”

“But we should still be prepared in case that doesn’t happen,” Seungmin pointed out.

They went back and forth for a few more minutes before a door down the hall opened and closed. The conversation died, and Minjun returned with Dr. Choi.

“I’m sorry to say this,” Dr. Choi began, “But I really don’t know what’s wrong with him. He does have a fever, but that shouldn’t be causing him this much fear. Would it be okay if I asked all of you a few questions to get a better idea of the situation?”

“Sure, of course,” Changbin said.

Dr. Choi sat down in one of the large armchairs. Jeongin held back a grin at the way it made her seem smaller when her feet didn’t quite touch the ground.

“Does Minho have any mental health disorders, particularly anything that might cause such anxiety?”

“Not that we’re aware of…” Chan trailed off, looking to each member in case they knew something he didn’t. Jeongin shook his head.

“Alright. What about his sleep patterns? Does he get enough rest?”

“We’ve all been sleeping less recently,” Felix answered. “Since we’ve had to move and work on getting an album ready at the same time, it’s been hectic, but nothing we haven’t dealt with before.”

“And when you’ve been this busy in the past, he never had any problems?”

“Not like this,” Chan replied, lacing his fingers together in his lap. He’d just nap during the day. No fever or anything, though.”

She nodded. “You guys may not be able to answer this, but does he have a family history of dementia or schizophrenia?”

“I don’t think so. He’s never mentioned anything like that, and his grandparents came to a show once in the past, so we were able to meet them and they seemed perfectly healthy.”

The doctor sighed. “Did he mention being around anyone who was sick? Maybe someone coughed on him in public?”

“He didn’t say.” Hyunjin shook his head.

“Okay. I don’t think this is a normal fever, so I’m going to have to take a blood sample back to run some tests, just in case. I’ll give Minjun-ssi a call when I know the results, and we’ll go from there. In the meantime, if any of you start to feel sick, stay home. If this is contagious, we don’t want it getting out of hand.”

“Yes ma’am,” Chan said.

Dr Choi left the apartment and returned moments later with a small, white plastic kit, which she took into Minho’s room. Minjun accompanied her. Jeongin thought it must have been easy to take a blood sample, since they came back in less than ten minutes. They thanked the doctor and wished her on her way. Minjun reassured them that they could call if they needed anything, then reminded them of their practices starting the next day. He also decided that if they needed to go to the company, it would be fine, so Chan could do his live as scheduled.

Jeongin couldn’t imagine how the doctor managed to stick a needle in Minho’s arm when Chan could hardly touch him without being assaulted, but he chose not to question it.

“What are we going to do about the choreography?” Felix asked. “We know Minho will pick it up quickly once he’s better, but it’ll be strange working with an empty slot, won’t it?”

“We can have the instructor fill in for him,” Hyunjin suggested. “Of course, they’re only going to stay for two or three days, so that won’t work. Never mind.”

“What about getting a trainee to fill in?” Jisung posed. “It’s a good learning experience for whoever’s involved, and JYP has loads of great dancers who haven’t debuted yet.”

“That’s still a lot to ask. It might be better to see if one of the company’s dance teachers is available,” Chan said, resting his chin on the back of his hand.

“Or we can ask Jinyoung sunBaenim so that we can watch Hyunjin fanboy the whole time,” Jeongin teased, earning himself a poke to the ribs by Seungmin. “Ow!”

“I’ll contact Minjun,” Chan said, walking into the other room for some quiet.

“Do you think Minho will get over this quick?” Jeongin asked.

Seungmin shrugged. “It could take a week or two. I don’t think this is one of those sick-day scenarios where he recovers in less than twenty-four hours.”

“You’re probably right…” Jeongin stared off, lost in thought. The conversation around him became drowned out by the possibilities of ‘tomorrow.’

_Chan does not need more pressure right now...but what can I do about it?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think about how the story is progressing. Any and all feedback is appreciated! Thanks a bunch for reading.
> 
> ~Prince


	6. Notice

I’d like to briefly explain some upcoming content warnings. I haven’t tagged them yet because they’re not in anything I’ve written or posted in the chapters so far, but there is some sensitive content written in the outline that I plan to keep in the story, which is why I went ahead and changed the rating from general audiences to teen and up.

Firstly, none of the topics that I touch on in this story are at all sexual. There is no romance between the members in this work, or any sexual activities, consensual or otherwise, so if that is something you’re uncomfortable with, you should be fine reading this.

I intend for this story to get very dark towards the middle, and maybe closer to the end. There is going to be some violence. It won’t be gory or disgusting, but I do plan on adding in a scene where one member at least tries to physically fight another one, which will probably lead to a short brawl that gets stopped almost as soon as it starts. I think just a couple punches will be thrown and that’s it..

The next potentially triggering subject will be mentions of self harm, and an attempted suicide. There will not be a self harm scene, but it is going to be talked about. Essentially, one character sees that another person has hurt themself, but only after they’ve done it. The discussion of self harm is not going to be gory. The attempted suicide is a different story. I know it’s going to happen in one of two ways, but I haven’t decided which yet. One does involve blood and the other doesn’t.

Lastly, I do want to assure my readers of a couple things. There WILL be content warnings in the beginning notes of all chapters that include these topics, so please pay attention to them. Obviously talking and writing about these things doesn’t bother me, but it could negatively affect some of you, and that’s not my goal. Fiction is not more important than your mental state. The other thing I want to note is that no one in this story is going to die. There are a couple of near death situations, but no one dies. This isn’t that kind of fic.

Thanks to anyone who actually took the time to read this strange concoction of a warning. I don’t want to be overdramatic about the topics by writing this whole disclaimer, but I do really want to make this stuff clear. This is not fluff. It’s angst. There are angsty topics. Plus, I plan to tag as I go, so I won’t be adding the “attempted suicice” tag until maybe the chapter before I post the part with the attempted suicide, and I don’t want my readers feeling like I tried to hide it so that people would be too invested in the story not to read the parts they don’t feel comfortable with.

Please be intentional about checking the beginning chapter notes. I am not going to put “warning” in all caps every time there’s something to warn you about. I’m simply going to make a statement in the notes. Sorry this turned out so long.

That’s all for this notice.


	7. Chapter Five: Day Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY this took so long, multiple family emergencies, plus a vacation for a week on top of the pandemic really just don't make it easy to write lol. Idk when the next chapter will be out, but I will keep writing! Also this is not beta read since it's about 2:30 in the morning so have fun, correct me later.

Sweat dripped off of Jeongin’s bangs and into his eyes when they finally took another water break. He sat against the wall beside Felix, who’d been sitting criss-crossed and picking at a loose thread on his shorts.

“Stop that, you’ll ruin the seam,” Jeongin chastised.

Felix rolled his eyes, but complied nonetheless. A pout formed on his lips as he took a sip from his water bottle.

“You okay?”

The elder nodded, but his eyes tracked something on the opposite side of the room. Jeongin followed his gaze to Jisung before the blonde spoke again.

“Have you noticed anything weird about Jisung today?”

He shrugged. “Not really, why?”

“He’s hardly said a word to anyone all day, and every time we get a break, he sits by himself. Jisung’s a crackhead. He’s never this standoff-ish during practice.”

“Maybe he’s tired? But you’re right, he has been distant. Maybe something about yesterday upset him.”

Felix shook his head. “Jisung’s always pretty open about anything bothering him. Something’s really off for him to straight up not talk to anyone for this long… I’m sort of worried.”

“Maybe you’re right… I’ll let Chan know, just in case. He’s good at talking Sungie down.”

Felix hummed.

The remainder of practice finished in the same manner; a few short breaks after long stretches of dance time, and Jisung’s particularly introverted behavior. They packed their things long after sunset and drove home in one of the vas the company let them use. Jeongin didn’t have time to nap on the way home due to the shortness of the drive, but he appreciated the opportunity to rest both physically and mentally for at least a moment.

“Alright boys, we’re here,” Changbin called from the drivers’ seat. They exited the vehicle and filed indoors. Just before they went through the doors, Jeongin caught hold of Chan’s arm and they lagged behind.

“What’s up, Innie?” Chan asked.

“Has Jisung talked to you at all today?” His brows furrowed as they made contact with Chan’s.

“No, not that I can think of. Why? Is something wrong?”

“Felix and I were sort of thinking so.” He shrugged. “He was super standoffish during practice is all. I thought something about Minho might have gotten him worked up but Felix disagreed and said the got the idea that it was something else, a bigger deal.”

Chan nodded. “I’ll talk to him inside. You and Felix try to keep everyone out of the rooms so we can have some privacy.”

Jeongin hummed and they took the stairs up to the second floor. The door had been left open for them. Inside, Jeongin took off his sneakers and gave Felix the rundown of his conversation with their leader. Felix got on board and gathered everyone but Jisung, who was in the living area, and Chan, who was waiting in Jisung’s room to talk to him, in the kitchen to discuss what they wanted to order, since nobody felt like cooking.

As the conversation bounced back and forth, Jeongin slipped out, and hid in the apartment’s hallway just outside Jisung’s bedroom, where he and Chan talked quietly.

“Hey, Sungie. Everything alright with you.”

“Yes. Do you need something?”

_His tone is so...formal. It’s like he’s not even talking to Chan, but a teacher._

“Uhh, no, not at all,” Chan’s voice rang out, wonky and confused. “I just wanted to make sure that you were feeling okay. You’ve just been kind of...far away since Minho got sick.”

“I’m alright. You can go back with the others now.”

_He sounds so...sad? Jisung hasn’t sounded like that since he first began meeting with Doctor Choi._

“Jisungie, you know you can talk to me about anything. I can tell something’s not right and I want to know how to help you.”

“It’s fine, you don’t have to pretend you care.”

“What?” Chan shot back quickly, now desperate. “What have we done to make you think something like that?”

Jisung scoffed. “I'm not stupid. I know you guys hate me. Why bother playing tricks like this? To make me feel less like an outcast? Just go be out there with people who you actually like.”

“Jisung, that isn’t true,” Chan half assured, half pleaded. “Where are these feelings coming from?”

“Just stop. I already know that I mean nothing to you, so you don’t have to fake it.”

Jeongin peered around the door and watched as realization flickered across Chan’s eyes.

“Jisung, why are you sweating?”

“What?”

“You can’t possibly still be hot from practice. It was a fifteen minute drive in the car, which had air conditioning, and we’ve been home at least ten minutes. Why are you hot?”

The younger rolled his eyes. “This has nothing to do with some stupid fever, Chan. You know that.”

“Then let me take your temperature.”

“No.” Defiance flashed in his eyes.

“I will hold you down if I have to Jisung, but if you caught whatever Minho has, that might explain why you’re thinking like this. You need to let me take it.”

Jisung huffed. “Fine. I don’t know why you’re giving me such hell when you know I’m only stating the obvious, but whatever.”

“Jeongin, get the stuff from Minho’s room, please.”

He blinked. _I had no idea Chan knew I was standing here, but ok._

Moments later, he returned with the thermometer, handing it to Chan. Jisung obediently opened his mouth just long enough for Chan to gently slip it under his tongue. The device beeped and he pulled it back out.

“What’s it say?” Jeongin asked.

Chan sighed, shoulders slumping. “102.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Jisung said meekly.

Though his earlier words sounded harsh, Jeongin took note of his timid tone and posture throughout the conversation.

_Jisung isn’t even that nervous before concerts. He really is convinced none of us like him._

“Ah, okay,” Chan breathed. “We need to change all the sheets in here and put you in the same room as Minho. I’m going to call Doctor Choi to see if she has gotten anything back from the blood sample she took from Minho. Jeongin, will you go make up another bed in that room?”

“Sure.”

They’d moved Seungmin out of that room and into Felix and Jisung’s, since theirs thankfully had a bunk plus a regular bed. Jeongin went to the hall closet and grabbed an extra set on plain white sheets plus two pillowcases and knocked on the door to Minho’s room.

“Come in,” he called from the other side. Jeongin entered and set the bedding down on the twin across from Minho’s before walking over to the man in bed.

“Are you feeling okay, hyung?” he asked, taking a moment to sit on the floor beside the bed.

Minho shrugged, arms crossed over his chest with his back to the wall. The day after he fell ill, Jeongin noticed Minho became far more paranoid than the first day, demanding to have someone in the room with him at all times, “for protection.” But the next day, he grew incredibly weak, unable to even drink on his own. However, sitting beside him now, he appeared stronger, able to at least sit up.

“I’m terrified,” he whispered. “I can hardly move, and I know you don’t believe me, but there are people who want to take my eyes, and it’s scary.”

“I believe that you think that’s true, if it’s any consolation,” he said. “You’re safe in here, at least, even if someone’s not with you.”

The elder scoffed. “Try saying that when you get sick like this. It’s hard.” The conversation paused. “What are those for?” Minho nodded towards the sheets on the opposite bed.

Jeongin stood and got to work, sure Chan would be in with Jisung soon. “Jisung has a fever. Chan thinks that he caught whatever you have.”

“Why?”

“He’s saying things that just don’t add up, that he thinks we all hate him and are just fake caring to make him feel better out of pity or something. He seems depressed, like he was when he first met with Doctor Choi.”

“Do you agree with Chan? That I’m contagious?”

Jeongin finished pulling on the last pillowcase. “I hope so. Otherwise, we’ll have two separate mysteries on our hands.”

“He’ll be staying in here, though?” Minho asked, coughing right after.

“Yeah, unless he gets better. Chan has probably already spoken to the doctor by now.”

“Well, at least having a roommate will help me relax,” the elder said, voice still soft.

“Have you been drinking enough water?”

Minho nodded, and Chan entered with Jisung before their discussion could continue. Jisung hadn’t looked that empty in over two years. Jeongin’s heart felt cold.

“Doctor Choi isn’t coming down tonight, since it’s late, but she’ll be available tomorrow if Jisung’s symptoms start to differ too much from Minho’s, or if anyone else gets a fever,” Chan informed.

“And the blood test?” Jeongin questioned.

“They didn’t find anything. They don’t know what this is, but she said that the paranoia could just be caused by the fever affecting certain parts of the brain. The best plan is to try and sweat it out.”

Jeongin nodded.

“All schedules are canceled for both of you,” Chan said to the sick ones. “No leaving this apartment unless it catches fire, you hear me?”

“As if I could,” Minho scoffed.

“I’m sorry you have to deal with me,” Jisung whispered.

“It’s not like that,” Chan promised. “You’ll see once the fever passes.”

“What if it doesn’t?” Minho asked.

_Boy, do I wish I had an answer for that one._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you tons for reading! Hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. If you have a second, I'd love a comment.
> 
> You can follow my Twitter @Sin_Prince_ for information on stories I'm writing. That account is currently dedicated to this story alone, so if you have an interest in keeping up with it, I suggest you follow and turn on notifications. I don't spam or anything, just post hen I upload something or have an update about delays in upcoming chapters.
> 
> Thanks again, love you guys. ~Prince


	8. Chapter Six: Day Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really not too proud of this chapter, it's literally 90% dialogue but it progresses the story so there isn't much I can do :( Hopefully the next will be better.

“What the hell is happening?” Chan exclaimed, slamming a hand down on the bar. “Why are we getting sick like this? And why does it seem so different between Jisung and Minho…”

“It could be the paranoia,” Jeongin posed, taking a seat. “Since they aren’t afraid of the same things normally, it makes sense if the fever is somehow affecting or amplifying the parts of their brains that deal with fear. Jisung is afraid of being unloved, or alone, and Minho’s always had a fear of going blind.”

“Maybe,” Seungmin said. He leaned against the counter with his arms crossed, one hand resting on his chin.

“This might sound ridiculous,” Hyunjin began, sliding onto the stool next to Jeongin. “But remember how Felix and I got cut on the bathroom doorknob before we replaced it? What if there was some sort of bacteria that we ended up spreading around?”

“That can’t be it, though,” Changbin sighed in disagreement. “Then either you or Felix would’ve had to get sick first.”

“Not necessarily,” Felix interjected. “Maybe it’s something you have to ingest. I put peroxide on the cut immediately after, but if Hyunjin didn’t, and he touched something, say, gave Minho a high five or even touched something he owns, then Minho came into contact with it, it could have gotten into his system if he didn’t wash his hands right away.”

“That still doesn’t explain Jisung, unless it’s just contagious,” Chan said.

“Whatever’s causing it is _definitely_ contagious,” Seungmin pointed out. “Within two days, Jisung caught it. That’s not a coincidence.”

“You’re right,” Jeongin hummed. “We need to be really careful, and avoid them as much as possible.”

“Chan, what’s the deal for today?” Changbin asked. “The doctors for the energy powder want to talk to us to see how things are going.”

_Could it be that? That means all of us should be sick…at least eventually..._

The morning after Jisung got sick, they’d called Minjun to work out how to continue. He instructed them to contain the disease to their apartment, meaning none of them were permitted to leave.

“If I can get Minjun to bring me some of my equipment I left at the studio earlier, we can keep recording, at least. We can use discord to call one of the producers, that way it’ll be like he’s in the studio with us and we’ll get any approval and adjustments we may need. This could work. It could be fine.”

“Chan, relax,” Hyunjin tried, walking over to peek over the Aussie’s shoulder. “It’s okay to have setbacks.”

“We need this album, Hyunjin,” he insisted. “If we want to keep up with other bands and hold relevance, we have to keep releasing content.”

“We could rearrange the year’s schedule,” Changbin suggested. “I know we wanted to do an album now and special solo stuff near the holidays, but we could reverse it. Save all the progress we’ve made on this album for next year, do the solo content soon, and a winter album for the holidays.”

“We can’t start from scratch right now, Bin, we’re already behind!” Chan rested his head in one hand and let his phone drop out of his hand, onto the granite counter with a _clack._

“Channie, we’re not going to lose relevance,” Felix assured, holding one hand from across the counter. “Look at BlackPink. They’ve had a year between each one of their last three comebacks. People still talk about them, and they aren’t losing any followers, either.”

“Their fans blame YG for the lack of content, though. Everyone knows JYP is going to let us release as much as we want to.”

“Okay, third option.” Jeongin sat to Chan’s left and looked him in the eye. “We tell people what’s going on if we still can’t leave in five days. If Day6 can release an album and not promote it due to mental health issues, I’m sure we can push back our release date due to Minho and Jisung, well, dying.”

“Stays will freak out.”

“Chan, can you do me a favor and not immediately shut down everything we try to suggest?” Changbin asked, point-blank.

“I’m sorry! I just…” Chan shook his head and took a deep breath, staring at his hands in front of him. “I want to be good for you guys. I want to be able to jump over any obstacle and make things work out no matter what.”

“And you are good for us,” Changbin promised. “But you have to be good for yourself, too.”

“This sucks!” Seungmin complained. “We don’t even know what’s wrong.”

“Remember, it could also be just a really bad fever,” Felix added.

“In answer to your earlier question, Changbin, we should set up a visit with the doctors over the phone. We shouldn’t see anyone until we know what we’re dealing with.”

Changbin nodded and proceeded to message his relative on the team working on the product. Chan texted Minjun to ask about equipment, and Felix dove right in to stress baking.

“Did any of you hear that?” Seungmin asked.

Jeongin furrowed his brow. The dorm was silent. “No. What did you hear?”

He shook his head. “I guess something outside? It was super quiet, I might have just imagined it.”

Jeongin shrugged and went to check in on Jisung and Minho. He brought them each a fresh glass of water with plenty of ice in an attempt to keep their temperature down. Neither of them felt like they needed more medicine yet, so he let them be after that.

“They look okay?” Chan asked when Jeongin returned to the kitchen.

“No, worse. Jisung was practically passed out, and Minho’s paler than you now. They look weak,” he said honestly.

“Well, that’s encouraging.” Seungmin rolled his eyes. “I hope none of us catch it.”

Changbin successfully set up a video meeting with the doctors and everyone was asked some questions. Did they feel any different taking it? Were there any negative side effects they noticed? Chan mentioned the fevers to them, but they vehemently protested that having anything to do with their product.

The call only lasted about twenty minutes. Afterwards, Jeongin got Chan’s blessing to use his laptop and conducted some research, starting with bacteria from rust, then moving on to the energy drink. Each topic brought him so close to answers before hitting a dead end.

_Everything I look up seems right at first, but then either doesn’t line up with the symptoms, or isn’t possible given our situation. One of these has to be it, right?_

“Jeongin.”

He whipped around in the spinny chair to find Chan lurking in the doorway. He closed out the research and cleared the history.

“Yes?”

“I didn’t mean to startle you, just wanted to ask you something.”

“What is it?” Jeongin stood and brushed off the imaginary dirt on his jeans.

“Do you ever hear, like, noises...at night?”

He blinked. “What?”

“Like from our neighbors,” Chan clarified. “I hear a lot of, like, walking and banging and stuff.”

“Oh. Yeah, actually, but it doesn’t keep me up. Why? Are you thinking about filing a noise complaint?”

“No, I just...it’s sort of creepy, no? Like, we’ve been here for over two weeks and the landlord said there were other people livin on this floor but I’ve never seen a single person on this level, or even in the elevator going to this floor, you know?”

“Now that you mention it, neither have I. I also never see anything in the mailboxes for the apartments next to ours.”

“Same!”

“Maybe he just got it confused with another level, and nobody lives on this story but us.” Jeongin shrugged.

“But the noises are coming from the other sides of walls, not above us or below us.”

“You’re right,” Seungmin said from the doorway. Jeongin jumped and Chan let out a yelp. “It's confirmed. We have ghost neighbors.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think so far! Next chapter probably won't have another sick character just yet, since I kinda want to draw more attention to Jeongin for now and the mystery of the illness. Thank you so much for reading! Comments and kudos are a huge encouragement!
> 
> ~Prince


	9. Chapter Seven: Day Fifteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I've been away for so long! This fic is not discontinued or anything, I just was under really immense pressure with school and work, but thanks to some really fantastic moots on twitter and a new anti-anxiety medication, I am back.
> 
> This chapter is sort of filler? You get to see the progression of Minho and Jisung's conditions.

Everything had gone to shit. Jeongin sighed as he watched the chaos around him, anxiety a stone in his chest. He sank into the recliner. Hyunjin was knelt on the floor, wrestling Minho’s hands away from his face. The elder, sitting on the couch, had rubbed at his cheeks and eyes until they were pink with irritation and raw from hours of friction. Jeongin flipped his hood up, trying to block out Minho’s screams as he shoved Hyunjin off, the latter stumbling back onto his butt. Hyunjin huffed.

“Min, calm down! I’m not going to hurt you but you’re going to hurt yourself if you don’t keep your hands off your face.”

“Get away from me!”

Jeongin flinched. He’d never heard Minho so...hoarse with desperation. He studied them for a moment longer, brows furrowed as Hyunjin continued to have his hands slapped away by their bandmate.

“Hyunjin,” he finally spoke up, “Just do it. He’s not going to let you if you keep being so gentle.”

“I know, but look.” Hyunjin ran his fingers through his long hair, exasperated. “He’s already hysterical. I don’t want to actually scare him.”

“You have to. He’s going to claw his own eyes out at this rate.”

With a look of defeat, Hyunjin turned back round to face Minho.

“No!” he screamed. “Don’t do this, Hyunjin, you don’t understand! It wasn’t a dream! They’re coming for my eyes!”

Jeongin’s blood turned cold.

_What could cause this? What sort of fever makes people this terrified? Delusional?_

He watched Hyunjin brace himself, shoulders rolling back. He lunged right for Minho, and succeeded in pinning both wrists down in his lap. Minho thrashed and screamed, Jeongin momentarily praying the neighbors didn’t file any complaints. He took a deep breath, finally able to relax now that Minho would settle down.

Any sense of relief he had vanished when Hyunjin groaned and fell right onto his back, one hand clutching his stomach.

“Minho!” Jeongin shouted, standing. “Did you kick him?”

The eldest simply shook his head, tears rolling down his eyes as he pulled his knees to his chest. “I told him to stop,” he said pitifully.

“Min, you know why, don’t you? Your skin is red from how much you’ve been messing with it.”

“Guys,” Seungmin called from the hallway, gaining their attention. “Are any of you playing music?”

Jeongin shook his head. “No, I don’t think anyone is. Why?”

“I swear to God, I hear a melody. It’s super faint, I just can’t tell where it’s coming from. Maybe it’s a neighbor or something.” Seungmin shrugged and retreated back behind the corner.

_That was odd… I don’t know how anyone would hear faint music over Minho’s screaming._

He helped Hyunjin up off the floor, something behind the couch catching his eye. He let Minho ramble away as Chan sneakily approached, a pair of handcuffs in his hands. Chan motioned for Jeongin and Hyunjin to each grab one of his arms, holding five fingers up, counting down. When his pinky went down, they jumped to action, Minho shouting in fear as Hyunjin and Jeongin leapt onto the couch on either side of him. Jeongin wrapped his arms around Minho’s left one, lifting it up for Chan to cuff. He wrapped one silver ring around the wrist Jeongin had gotten a hold of, then pushed Minho forward so he could pull both arms behind his back and link them together. He let Minho go with a satisfied sigh.

“That should keep you from doing anything too dangerous for now.”

Minho glared at him as though he wished for Chan to drop dead.

“Those will not come off until I can trust you not to harm yourself.” Chan faced the other two, who had stood up from the sofa. “Hyunjin, watch him. Jeongin, will you come with me to check on Jisung?”

“Sure.”

He trailed behind Chan into the “sick room” as they labeled it, which is where Minho was supposed to be, until his and Jisung’s bickering became unbearable. They found Jisung curled up on his bed, phone in hand, and an airpod in one ear. Jeongin frowned at his pale skin and sunken eyes.

“Hey Sungie,” he greeted. “How are you feeling?”

“I know I’m dumb, Jeongin, but I’m smart enough to know you’re not really interested in my answer.”

He blinked. _I didn’t realize Jisung’s fear of being hated also extended to him hating himself. We should watch him close for a while, in case he tries to do anything dangerous…_

“Come on, Jisung,” Chan said in a more lighthearted tone. “We want you to be happy and healthy. Tell us what we can do for you.”

Jisung merely rolled over to face the wall. “You shouldn’t lie, Channie. You look better when you’re being honest.”

Jeongin deflated. “Do you need anything? If your symptoms are back we can give you medication.”

“Jesus, just get out!”

Chan and Jeongin both jumped at the outburst, Jisung laying on his back so he could look at them.

“Don’t you get it? As much as you hate having me around, I hate being here! Don’t bother trying to take care of me, okay? Leave.”

Jeongin opened his mouth to plead with him, but Chan gently ushered him out of the room before he could say a word. Jeongin looked down at him, face contorted in concern, but Chan simply shook his head and shut the door on their way out.

“He needs to be alone.”

“I’m worried,” Jeongin emphasized. “You know he’s acting the same way he did a couple years ago. He’s depressed. Remember what happened the last time we stepped in too late?”

“Yes, Innie, I remember,” Chan said, exasperated. He ran a hand through his short hair. “I don’t think this is the same, though. I doubt he’ll...act on anything.”

Jeongin tilted his head, unamused. “It didn’t take long for Minho to start acting up.”

“Okay! Give me a day or two to figure out how to deal with him.”

“Chan...we might not have a day or two,” he pointed out, his voice hushed to keep the others in the living area from worrying. “You could get sick next. Any of us could. I don’t know what we’ll do.”

“I know, I know. It’s just…” Chan shrugged, dismay etched into his features like stone carvings. “I am not equipped for this. This isn’t a leader thing…” He huffed. “This is a doctor thing. Those two would fight us tooth and nail if we tried to take them to any kind of hospital, though.”

“Doctor Choi said we should stay here, so let’s do our best to listen to her. If it becomes too difficult, we can call in again.”

“What are you two whispering about?” Felix rounded the corner, scaring the everloving shit out of Jeongin.

“Just our sick boys,” Chan said with a halfhearted grin. “What’s up, Lix?”

“I just figured I’d let you know that Minho fell asleep on the couch, so you should probably get those handcuffs off of him.”

“Ah, right!”

“Why did you have a set of those anyway?” Jeongin questioned, unsure if he really wanted to know.

“Uhh…” Chan blinked. “I may or may not have had to cuff Changbin to a chair at the studio to force him to finish a song with me before. But I let him go as soon as we were done I promise!”

Felix doubled over, and Jeongin curled into him to laugh.

“I’m never gonna let him live that down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you stick around for more.

**Author's Note:**

> One thing I want to say is that I tagged it as chose not to use archive warnings because I'm not sure any really apply, but I also know that some heavier topics will come up later on in the fic. I will put warnings in the beginning chapter notes for any sensitive topics that are included in the chapter, and I will add them into the tags as we go.
> 
> Questions and feedback keep me going! You can drop a comment here or DM me on my Twitter that I use to promote fics, which is now Sin_Prince_
> 
> Thanks a bunch for reading!


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